A/N: Another chapter? Man I'm on a roll! And I know everyone's probably waiting for the main event and yes, I'm hoping to have our favourite captain in the next chapter! Hang in there folks!


"Well this is it," Rick said as I stepped inside the apartment he shared with this Dr. June woman. I almost expected the place to be as boring as his office but was slightly surprised when I saw a few pieces of contemporary art lining the walls and a couple of family photos sitting atop the bureau by the dining room wall. My eyes also focused on a nice glass display case with all sorts of exotic looking figures and dishes lining the shelves. Otherwise it looked to be a good sized 2 bedroom, much nicer than anything I could afford back home.

"Not doing too bad are ya?" I asked as he dragged my suitcase across the foyer behind me.

"I have a good job. I'm able to buy things honestly," he replied with more wit than I would have expected.

"Ouch! Deep dig to the heart there," I said clutching my chest dramatically.

"Rick?" I turned my head towards a soft but polite voice. Standing by what I assumed was the entrance to a probably just as spacious kitchen was an extremely pretty woman with a shy smile on her face. Honestly I almost hated her right off the bat just for being so damn pretty. Not that I wasn't, I just wasn't no beauty queen. I also felt almost morbidly obese compared to her slim figure. My hips definitely did not lie.

"You must be Mallory. I'm Dr. June Moone, but just June is fine," she said politely, holding out her hand to me. I decided I may as well make the best of the situation and gave her a half smile.

"Nice to meet you," I said taking her hand and giving it a quick shake. I could almost feel Rick behind me holding his breath. "So...really nice place. You have good taste in art."

June practically beamed. "Thank you! How did you know it was mine?"

"Pshhh Rick wouldn't be caught dead with this type of stuff otherwise, he's not exactly what you would call an art lover."

"Hey!" My brother interrupted. "I appreciate that she appreciates it. That counts."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever you say. So, got a room for me?"

"Oh yes of course! This way!" June eagerly led me down a short hallway and opened a door on the right. "It was a guest room slash office for Rick so it was a bit cold, I tried to make it a little homier for you. I hope it's alright."

I stepped inside and took in my new surroundings. The bed was done up in a set of black and white ornate patterned comforter and pillows and a light pink rug lay on the floor beside it. An antique looking dresser fit snug against one wall with a matching night table and bookshelf filling the rest of the space. Fresh flowers had been placed in a rather expensive looking vase on the writing desk by the door.

"It's...really nice," I said honestly. June looked pleased and helped Rick bring my suitcase into the bedroom.

"The bathroom is across the hall," Rick said. "We'll probably be having dinner around 7." He stood in the doorway looking slightly awkward. June smiled and took his arm.

"Well I'm sure you'd like to unpack and get settled. If you need anything let me know. I really hope we can make this situation as comfortable for you as possible."

"Yeah...thanks," I said feeling just as awkward. They both took their leave shutting the door behind them. I locked it immediately and threw my satchel onto the bed before collapsing on it myself, noticing the slight bounce the mattress gave. I hated to admit it but June was right about one thing, I would be comfortable. A strong part of me wanted to dislike her but found I couldn't. She was too nice, too timid to hate. I closed my eyes and contemplated how the day had gone so far. I left my mom at the airport early that morning, with not so much as a hug goodbye but more of a behave yourself or else and come back the perfect daughter. Met with a half brother I haven't seen in just over 2 years since he had to bail my sorry ass out of jail. Discovered that his job actually fascinated me a lot more than I ever would have imagined and couldn't keep a pair of enticing blue eyes from popping up in my head. Perhaps I could convince Rick to give me a job? Convince him it would be good for me, to help me back on the right track. He could believe that right?

I scoffed at my own absurd thoughts before rolling off the bed and pulling my laptop out of my satchel. I had one true friend that stuck with me through all the bullshit back home and I needed her advice stat.

It only took a few moments before the Skype call was answered and a woman with dirty blonde hair and purple framed glasses appeared on the screen. She waved as soon as she saw me sitting cross legged on the bed.

"Hey Mal! I'm guessing you made it then? Didn't make a quick escape like you planned?"

I snorted. "Nah, too much effort. Plus I gotta say, this place is actually pretty nice, you should see it Becca, my brothers a lot more loaded than I thought."

"Nicer than our own homey shithole?" We both shared a laugh at the mention of our former shared hovel. It had been a total dump, but we had had each other, at least before shit hit the fan and I got sent to jail.

"Nothing could beat that," I told her honestly. Her smile glitched for a second on my screen then went back into focus. She sighed and adjusted her glasses.

"So how are you feeling about all of this? I mean, it's got to beat jail right?"

I ran my hands through my shaggy hair and thought for a moment. "I guess so yeah, I mean of course. Jail was awful, but at the same time, I'm not sure."

Becca simply gave me that look that she's known for when I'm making no sense and just need to fess up.

"On the way here we stopped at the high security prison my brother is in charge of Bec, I think he expected it to scare me straight. But I found something there, and I waited just for this moment to share it with none other than you!"

"Oh you flatter me seƱorita," she said saucily. "So what is it?!"

I finally pulled the binder out of my satchel and put it close to the camera so she could see it clearly. "Taa dahh!"

"Top secret," Bec read. "Holy shit what is it?"

"Let's find out shall we?" I opened the book with the widest grin I possessed and read the first page out loud for her. "Task Force X. Shit, this is some sort of government funded thing, a secret one obviously."

"Oh obviously," Becca said with a roll of her eyes. She tapped her screen to get my attention which had shifted to a few pages in. "What else is in it?"

"It's a team," I replied in awe, turning the binder in my lap so she could see. "I've never seen people like this before. There's a fucking crocodile man Bec! And a guy that can control fire."

She stared at me in disbelief through the screen. "I would never ever in a million years believe you if you didn't have the proof in your hands. Even now I'm struggling girl. But that picture of the croc guy is terrifying as fuck."

"It's unbelievable," I whispered before I turned to the next page. And that's when my entire body froze and I almost leaped off the bed in excitement.

"ITS HIM BEC!" My voice went all high pitch and I stared in wonder at the picture looking back at me.

"Ouch, watch the squealing. You don't need your brother barging in remember. Him who?"

"I saw him at the prison today! He was locked up in a high security cell and I saw him on one of the monitors in my brothers office."

Becca squinted and looked closely at the screen as I held the page up for her to see.

"Captain Boomerang? Is this guy for real? He sounds batshit crazy Mal, look at the list of robberies he...oh for fucks sake."

I looked at her with a dumbfounded look. "What?"

She stared at me hard. "You like him because he steals shit like you do. The pair of you are thieves."

"How insulting," I huff, pretending to be hurt. "Besides how can I like someone I don't know? Preposterous."

"More like you shouldn't even think about liking someone who is not only in prison but again, totally insane. It says he likes pink unicorns Mal. What the fuck? Pink unicorns? Who puts that in a file?"

I laughed with glee and hugged the binder to my chest. "So do I! It's perfect!"

Becca sighed and put her head in her hands. "I don't once recall you mentioning you liked unicorns, let alone pink ones," she muttered.

"Hey, we watched The Last Unicorn together once remember? You cried, I cried, it was a touching moment."

"You've lost it. I thought you had lost it when you went to jail for that ridiculous as fuck robbery but now I know for sure, it's official, you've lost every single marble."

I pouted at her and pushed the page with his picture as close to the camera as I possibly could. "But look at him Bec! He's adorable! And an Aussie! You know how much I love accents. I'd let him eat a shrimp off mah bahbee any day."

Becca gave me that god awful look again.

"Forgetting everything you just said I have to say that was the worst Australian accent I have ever heard. Don't do that again. Anyway miss crazy pants, how would you ever meet him? He's locked up."

"That's not exactly something I had planned out just yet," I admitted. "I was honestly thinking about asking Rick if he could get me some sort of job at the prison. Nothing fancy of course, but maybe he'll buy it."

"I can't condone what you're doing Mal, but I also can't stop you either. I'm here and you're there. But please listen when I tell you this is a bad idea. Now I'm still curious, go to the next page already."

I gave a loud "Harrumph," before agreeing and flipping the page. The next page was ten times more shocking than the last. Me and Bec both stared at each other in complete silence for a few seconds before she broke it.

"Is that...your brother?"

Colonel Rick Flag's face was indeed right there on the page, plain as day along with all his statistics.

"I can't believe it," I whispered and continued to read. "The whole time. He was on a mission with them before they all got thrown back in the slammer! He lead them Bec!" She remained silent as I flipped the page. A picture of none other than June Moone graced the page. "For fucks sake."

"What is it?" Bec asked quietly. "Who is she?"

"This is Rick's girlfriend. The one who went through all the trouble to decorate this room and make me feel at home. The woman my mother wants me to idolize and a woman who was freakin' possessed by a real goddamn witch Bec!" I found myself losing my composure, and biting my lip harder than intended.

"Was?" Bec questioned. "She's not now?"

"Apparently not," I replied licking my lower lip and feeling a cut there. "Some sort of ancient enchantress occupied her body but was defeated during their first mission. The details in here are vague. Fuck. I never would have guessed that."

Becca gave me an amused look. "No hon, I don't think anybody would. I mean, we knew people like this existed. After Superman went down, most shit was let out of the bag but this is something else entirely Mal. You are legit living with two people from this team."

I nodded and hesitantly closed the binder. "Well Rick can't know I have this, that's for sure. But I'm going to find out more."

"I was afraid you'd say that but figured as much. Try to be careful Mallory, please. The secrets safe with me but watch yourself. Whether you like to admit it or not, you're a good person deep down. You don't belong with them."

I gave my lifelong best friend a half smile. "Don't worry about me Bec, I can handle this."

"Goodnight Mal, keep in touch crazy pants. Try not to have any pervy Aussie man dreams."

"No promises," I said cheekily and hit the end call button. After the call disconnected I simply sat there taking it all in. Then I picked up the binder and flipped back to a certain page. Those eyes stared up at me, all too real.

"Sorry Bec," I said to myself as a grin split my face. "I'm not done."